


Multiple Soulmates? Me?

by ShoyzzArt



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: F/M, Hurt and comfort, Misunderstanding, platonic soulmate au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-05
Updated: 2020-01-05
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:48:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,025
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22125115
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShoyzzArt/pseuds/ShoyzzArt
Summary: Tony thinks that nothing can impress him anymore. That is until finds a young kid who is way smarter than people give him credit for.Oh and as if it wasn't enough, this kid was his soulmate.ORStark Industries held an important exhibition in the hopes of finding young minds to invest in. That's where Tony meets Peter Parker, the soulmate he was most definitely not looking for.
Relationships: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 33
Kudos: 585
Collections: Irondad Fic Exchange 2019, The Best Irondad/Spiderson Fics, The Best Peter Parker Whump Fics, The Best of the Best MCU Fics





	Multiple Soulmates? Me?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [losingmymindtonight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/losingmymindtonight/gifts).



> Gift for the wonderful losingmymindtonight who always delighted us with beautiful written iron dad fics.
> 
> You wanted a platonic soulmate AU? You got it!
> 
> I have to admit I screamed out of excitement and also nervousness.
> 
> I do hope you like it, I really enjoyed doing this. Sorry that I wasn't able to post it according to the schedule, it’s a freakishly long fic (at least for me) with more than 12k words. It kept getting longer and longer.
> 
> Anyway, happy reading and enjoy!!

_ Boring, boring and boring. _

That was all Tony thought while he walked through the tower. Pepper had suggested it, and by that, she meant he had to oblige and hold a sort of “high-end science fair,” if you would call it that. 

She had said it would be a good opportunity to find potential minds who could work for SI in the future, but in all honesty, all the things he laid his eyes on didn’t impressed him that much.

_ “No.” _

_ “Tony, it’ll be a great opportunity to see what other brilliant minds are out there. We could find people who could become part of the creative team at SI. I believe that opening internships would be a great opportunity to form minds from a young age.” _

_ “Greater than mine? Please.” He scoffed. Pepper rolled her eyes. “Also, do you see me as a person with the patience to mentor people? Especially kids?” _

_ “Tony.” She used ‘the tone’, and that meant that her decision was final. _

_ Sigh. _

_ “Fine, text me when and where.” _

He smiled at the memory before lifting his left hand and looking at his inner wrist. The name ‘Pepper’ was carved delicately into the skin. His soulmate mark ever present.

At the beginning,  only the first letter of his romantic soulmate's name had shown . From a young age, he’d known that the full name of one’s soulmate would appear once physical contact of any kind was made. He still remembered the day when he had found this to be true: they’d accidently bumped into each other and when the two of them had looked down at their wrists, more letters had begun to form. They had stayed silent the following days, avoiding conversations on both sides.

At first, Pepper had wanted nothing to do with the billionaire, considering his gambling and drinking (and other things as well). But in the end, she’d decided to give him a chance. 

On his part, he was glad it was her. Even though they didn’t always see eye to eye, they made it work. And he was grateful that even though he made her go through horrible and stressful situations, she had always stayed by his side.

He was also grateful for his other soulmate mark. On his left shoulder the first words he heard Rhodey say were stamped as a reminder of the night they met. Tony had to admit that it had been a rough ride with Rhodey, their different personalities creating friction between them, but in the end, it had forged an unbreakable friendship between the two. Rhodey was always there for him.

His smile dropped as he thought of his third and last soulmate, who he had still not found, the lack of colors being a constant reminder of them being out there. It was common for people to have two marks, but Tony was one of the very few who had three. The third mark was a painful one: apart from his irises being black, he was also unable to see colors. Once his eyes would meet his soulmate’s, he would gain colors in both his sight and  irises .

  
  


Most people said that he was lucky to have a third soulmate as not many people had one. Tony always thought it was a curse. He never understood why  _ he _ had to be the one to get it. He’d never had a good relationship with his family, especially his father, (he was an awful role model to him) so the concept of a third soulmate was very foreign to him. It was said it was supposed to bring people together who needed each other but in a different way than a romantic or a friendship mark. Tony had never understood that. He had Pepper and Rhodey and managed just fine. He had everything he had ever wanted and more. By now he thought his third soulmate mark had to be a mistake, never bothering to look for that person.

He had tried to hide his mark behind different sets of sunglasses, always wearing them in public. Journalists were extremely nosy regarding his soulmates and when suspicions about there being a third one were confirmed by a paparazzi lucky enough to catch him without his sunglasses on, it got even worse.

For one, there was a part of the public that was, of course, curious, always wondering and trying to guess who his third soulmate could be. And then, there were the rest of them, who loved nothing more than to criticize. How could Tony Stark  _ ever _ be someone’s third soulmate considering his habits and tendencies?

Even though the picture got leaked a long time ago, he would still use  sunglasses in public. People would often ask him about it but he would always change the subject entirely or leave without giving an answer.

Luckily, on this event, press was strictly forbidden. He had wanted for the participants to feel at ease, but deep down he knew it was mostly for him, to have some peace and quiet.

“Everything okay, boss? You spaced out there a little bit,” Happy said.

“Yeah, everything’s fine.”

  
  


Tony straightened up and took a quick look around, calculating how much time until he was done and could get out of there. 

He estimated around 2 to 3 more hours.

_ Great. _

They decided to have the participants leave their projects in a certain room with a white card stating their name and relevant information. While Tony inspected them, the participants waited together in an adjacent room. That way, Tony could take his time examining, and most importantly, do it alone without having a bunch of people asking questions or following him around.

An hour or so passed when he finally saw something that interested him. The materials used were old, rusty and had scratch marks on them. It had a ‘sloppy’ look to it. Definitely not professional but the idea behind it caught his curiosity. 

Happy cleared his throat. “The colors are hideous.”

The comment stopped his train of thought. Tony turned around to face him, not believing what Happy had just said..

“What? They are.”

“Well, it’s not like I can  _ see _ them but I’m more interested in the design than the ‘hideous’ colors.”

Happy shrugged, not bothering with a reply.

Tony rolled his eyes. He grabbed the card and read the name.

_ Peter Parker, participant #0810. _

“Happy, do me a favor and bring participant 0810.”

“As if I have a choice,” Happy said while walking away.

“No, you don’t.”

Tony thought he heard Happy complaining along the way, but he didn’t really care. Well, maybe a little. But he had always enjoyed teasing Happy and knew that Happy didn’t take it too seriously. 

Tony, not being a man with much patience, grabbed his phone to pass the time, not looking at anything in particular.

Someone cleared their throat. He really should start to pay attention to his surroundings. He put his phone away in his suit pocket and looked at Happy and then to the person beside him. Tony got a glimpse of someone short with brown hair and awful sense of fashion.

As soon as he did, his eyes started stinging. He doubled over and hissed softly. His hands shot up, one taking the glasses off while he rubbed the back of his other hand over both eyes in the hope to make the pain stop. 

He felt Happy’s hands on his back, heard him freaking out over the com ms. Tony knew he could trust his safety to him but sometimes he felt Happy overreacted a bit.

Tony reassured Happy that everything was fine, that something must have gotten into his eye.

Luckily, the itchiness slowly started subduing . He looked down and blinked a few times until he felt relatively comfortable.

”Seriously, Happy I’m -”

Tony looked up and stopped short. He did a double take. A soft gasp left his mouth.

”Boss?”

Tony didn’t pay him any attention. No words came out of his mouth. 

Because for the first time in 42 years he could finally see colors. 

Colors were everywhere: the floor, the ceiling, walls, tables, clothes. He was surprised that some objects which shared the same ‘grey’ tone, looked very different with colors involved.

He’d always wondered what they would look like, tried to imagine it but it didn’t compare in the slightest to what his eyes could see now.

His eyes darted from left to right, up, down. He wanted to see everything, absorb all the new information filling his vision. He reminded himself to ask FRIDAY to find the best and quickest way to learn each color.

He’d most definitely look childish but he could never learn them before, so he should start doing so now right?

He couldn’t help it but the corner of his mouth went up, a smile formed on his face.

“They’re brown.”

Tony whirled around and finally looked at Happy. He was wearing a black and white suit, but Tony could see other colors blending in subtly. Curious as to what Happy had said, Tony asked, “What?”

“I’ve always wondered what color your eyes were going to be.”

Tony noticed Happy giving him a small smile, something he did not do very often. The smile, though, was short lived; he frowned.

“Wait - does that mean - ”

“My soulmate.”

Tony and Happy looked at each other for a long time. They turned their heads slowly to the side where the other person was standing.

He was currently facing away from them, still rubbing his eyes like Tony had done a few seconds ago. A soft ‘woah’ was heard when his hands came down. 

Tony’s smile dropped then. His soulmate was standing right there. He was excited, sure, but also nervous. He didn’t  _ do _ nervous, but right now, it was all he could feel. He also didn’t know how he would handle the situation. The media would be all over him and, even worse, his soulmate as well. He wanted to avoid that at all costs. His soulmate didn't deserve that. 

Tony himself had hated the constant presence of the media when he was younger. He still did, but he could handle it better now, pretending (most of the time) that he didn’t care about the media’s attention at all.

His soulmate on the other hand … currently, he was looking around himself just like Tony had. When he turned his head towards them, his eyes met Happy’s and then Tony’s.

Tony couldn’t help it, his eyebrows shot up in surprise. He had thought that his soulmate was going to be ... was going to be …

Well, not a kid. Someone older. He was probably around 12. And his young face was starting to show a disbelieving expression, his eyes wide as he pointed his finger at them. “No way. Does that mean you’re my -”

“Yup, soulmate,” Tony answered dryly. “That would be me.”

Peter didn’t say anything for a few seconds. He was baffled by what had just happened. Tony waited patiently for a reaction. It was a stretch to have the words ‘Tony Stark’ and ‘patience’ in the same sentence, considering that, well, he had none.

“Tell me how it works,” Tony said while looking at Peter’s invention, moving on from the awkward moment this was sure to become..

“You - you don’t know?”

Tony scoffed.  _ Unbelievable _ . But it seemed to do the trick and divert the kid’s attention towards his claimed invention.

“ _ Yes _ . I  _ do _ know how it works, kid. I figured that out myself. I want to see if  _ you  _ know. Hasn’t been the first time someone replicated an idea without knowing what they were doing.”

“Oh, right.”

Tony heard Peter speak, explaining what he did and how he did it. No, scratch that. The kid didn’t speak, he rambled. Tony rolled his eyes. He didn’t expect someone so young would be participating. But he had to admit that after hearing the basics (he ignored the movie and tv show references thrown in from time to time) he realized that the kid had potential.

“Ok, kid. I heard you,” Tony interrupted Peter finally.

Peter’s eyes left his invention to meet Tony’s.

“But I wasn’t finished -“

“Yeah yeah, I know. But I got it. I know that you did, in fact, build it.”

Peter nodded. He looked between Tony and Happy, waiting for further instructions.

“I guess we’ll be in contact. As in we will contact you. Happy will take you to the others.”

“Does this mean I got the internship?” Peter asked hopefully.

“We’ll see.” Tony looked at Happy and moved his head to the side, indicating their cue to leave. Happy grabbed Peter’s arm gently and motioned for him to follow.

Tony turned, looked in the opposite direction. He waited until they were a little further away when he decided to speak.

“Oh, and Happy was right.”

Tony heard both Peter’s and Happy’s steps come to a stop. He assumed they turned to look at him. Tony knew both of them were curious. He turned around to face them. He tried to keep his face serious but if they looked hard enough, they could see a hint of a smile on Tony’s face.

“It  _ does _ look hideous.”

Happy, who had the tiniest curious expression quickly changed into his ‘normal’ grumpy annoyed face.

Peter on the other hand looked at his invention. His mouth opened and closed, trying to find something to say but nothing came out. He sighed and looked back at Tony.

“You know that’s not fair.”

* * *

After that awkward moment, Tony put his sunglasses on quickly, not wanting to risk anyone looking at him and figure out what just happened. He knew that if the media found out about him finding his soulmate they’d never stop asking about it. He didn’t want to put Peter on the spotlight. 

He saw Happy and Peter walking away after telling Peter they’d be in touch about his project, Peter looking everywhere at everything. As soon as they were gone, he took the elevator to his private floor. He went towards the window and looked to the sky in hopes to clear his mind. He thought that it would have a little more color to it but it was all black, nothing special about it. 

Tony’s mind went back to the kid suddenly. Although he had great potential he wasn’t sure if he should continue. He never expected to find his soulmate like this. He thought that it would never happen, but destiny said differently. 

Uneasiness crept into him. He thought about what he had read about third soulmates, about needing each other. Why would he need a random kid? He didn’t want to admit it but he didn’t want to ruin Peter’s life. How could the the kid need him? He was a mess himself, doubting in lots of things.  _ I need to call this off while I still can _ .

He thought about possible excuses he could come up with so he wouldn’t have to be with the kid. The hardest part was going to be the media. They made a big fuss over the exhibition so he really had to think about it carefully.

He scratched his head. Not wanting to think about it anymore, he found himself riding the elevator down to his workshop. That had always been a place of refuge and safety, cut off from the world where no-one could reach, except for Pepper and Rhodey who had the code to get in.

The glass door opened for him and his eyes traveled from one side to the other. The workshop looked even better now, all the colors bright and gleaming. He smiled, glad that he asked for help when he put it together. It took Tony a few minutes to actually start working, he stared at everything new his eyes found. He sat and pulled a blueprint for a new idea for a portable Iron Man suit, well a smaller one. He made the briefcase a few years ago but he never really liked it.

An hour later, he heard someone coming down the stairs in a hurry. He dropped the screwdriver he had been using,smirking because he knew the sound of those shoes.

“Tony?”

He smiled even wider at Pepper’s enthusiastic voice. He stood up when he sensed she was near him and turned. Tony’s eyes widened. 

_ Wow _ .

Tony was speechless when he looked at Pepper. Her red hair and blue eyes were very vibrant and strong, contrasting beautifully with each other.

Pepper cupped Tony’s face gently. Her eyes stared intensely at his, studying, examining, absorbing every detail. She smiled warmly and leaned for a short kiss.

“How does it feel?” 

Tony thought about it for a second. “Surreal.”

“Tell me all about him.”

“What, my soulmate?”

“ _ Yes _ , your soulmate.”

Tony grew serious. He avoided Pepper’s eyes.

“Oh come on, it can’t be that bad.”

“I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do. If it were me, I’d never see that kid again.”

Her eyes widened. “A kid? Wasn’t expecting that.”

“How do you imagine I feel?” There were not many times that Tony was unsure of something, let alone show it in front of someone. But Pepper was different. He knew she would never judge him, she always helped to make him feel better. Pepper squeezed his shoulder in a reassuring way. She rubbed her thumbs up and down.

“Let’s try something. No, don’t give me that face. Hear me out, how about we do this: instead of the internship, why don’t  _ you  _ spend time with him?”

“I don’t think so. What could I possibly do with a 13 year old?”

“Work on a project with him? You can figure something out. He is your soulmate, don’t miss the chance to get to know him. I know you won’t say it out loud but you have changed for the better, with Rhodey being here, with  _ me _ ..” Pepper took his big hands. “What if he’s the same?” 

Tony hesitated. Not sure. Pepper did have a valid point. Rhodey and Pepper had been the greatest thing to happen to him.

“Promise me you’ll try.” 

Tony rolled his eyes.

“Fine fine fine. But if I screw it up, it’s going to be your fault.”

Pepper snorted and shook her head.

* * *

As soon as he remembered, about four days later, Tony told Happy to get a hold of Peter and set up a time and day to meet at the tower. He had been so busy on the workshop these past few days that it took him by surprise when FRIDAY reminded him that Peter was coming over in a few hours. He got ready and waited nervously in the workshop. He wasn’t sure why he worried. It was just a kid after all.

“Boss, Peter Parker has arrived at the premises. He’s waiting upstairs.”

“Thanks FRI.”

Tony went up to the lobby. Personnel came and went. There was only a small figure sticking out on this picture.

“Peter Parker” Tony called, Peter turned to him quickly. He started walking his way back to the workshop, soon he heard a set of footsteps following him. Tony still wasn’t sure where this was headed. When they entered the workshop Peter froze, his eyes widening, he stared at everything his eyes could find. 

“So.” Tony said. Peter finally

“Oh! Sorry. I was just - This is so awesome.” Peter smiled, he gestured to the whole room.

His landed on one of the first Iron Man suits. Tony watched Peter walk to it completely mesmerized by it, it seemed like he had forgotten that Tony was there in the room with him.

“You like that?” Tony asked Peter, he answered and never took his eyes off the suit that standing behind the glass.

“Yeah, specially the flight stabilizers redesign.” Tony frowned. That information was not shared with the public. “How could you tell?” Tony tried.

“The shape and structure is definitely different from the previous suits, allowing it to maneuver in a more organic way. This is basic stuff.”

“That’s definitely not basic. I think you’re the first person to ever notice.” Peter looked at him.

“Well, I could say I’m a fan.” He shrugged with a smile, Tony hummed and smirked. 

“Let’s see how much you actually know.”

Tony could tell the kid was nervous at first, it took him a few tries sometimes to get answers right. As they went through the series of questions Tony realized this kid was way beyond smart. It’s been quite some time since he’d spoken with someone that could keep up with him, and now Peter was one of them. He knew that with the right education, Peter could be even smarter than him in the future.

After the questions, Tony wanted to start with something simple, so he decided to work on a circuit board. Tony handed Peter some tools, he took them and worked effortlessly on it, he knew different procedures like the back of his hand.

“So you’re the famous Mr Parker” Both Tony and Peter turned in surprise to see Pepper standing a few feet away. They had been so absorbed in what they were doing they hadn’t heard her coming. Peter placed the tools down carefully and extended his hand to her.

“Wow, Pepper Potts. Very nice to meet you.”

“Would you look at that. He has manners.” Pepper took his hand and shook it, she also looked at Tony. “Maybe you can learn something from him.” Tony squinted his eyes at her, she shot him a playful smile.

“I just wanted to meet our new guest, but I have to go, the sun’s almost down I’m not done with half -”

“Has the sun set?” Both adults looked at Peter with surprise at his question. Pepper looked at Tony and then back at Peter.

“No, I think maybe 10 minutes from now. Why?”

“I bet the sunset looks beautiful from up here.”

“What’s so special about the sunset?” Peter looked surprised. Pepper on the other hand looked at him accusingly. “Tony you haven’t seen a sunset yet?” 

“You have to see it Mr Stark!” 

Tony didn’t get why both of them were so adamant on taking him to the roof. Thanks to their persistence (and annoyance) he found himself riding the elevator to the towers roof. The elevator’s door opened and Tony had to close his eyes momentarily due to the sunlight.

He took a few steps and exited the elevator, Peter and Pepper following behind him. He opened his eyes where the sun was sitting over the horizon.

Tony gasped. He couldn’t believe nature could be so beautiful, so perfect. He kept observing the different colors, shades and patterns they drew on the sky. Even the clouds looked beautiful.

“Is this what you see everyday?” Pepper took his hand and Tony stared at her eyes shining brightly.

“And now you can see it too.” Pepper took the opportunity to gaze at Peter and back at Tony as if saying  _ Thanks to him you can see it _ . Tony smiled at her.

* * *

Days turned into weeks, and weeks into a few months. Tony and Peter had grown closer and closer. Tony looked forward to the days Peter would come over. They settled on Tuesdays and Thursdays which worked best with Peter’s school schedule. Peter was quieter at the beginning, now Tony couldn’t make him stop. Even so, he didn’t complain. He liked listening to him talk, it was a nice change of pace. Wherever Tony needed to concentrate on something he would let Peter work on something harder which required more concentration out of him.

Tony made sure that Peter was comfortable while they worked together. Tony liked to blast his favorite music, which helped him to concentrate. After seeing Peter flinch every time the music was on, he told FRIDAY to turn it either down or off. Peter had asked why but Tony dismissed it by saying he got tired of listening. 

Tony observed what interested Peter the most and made sure to prepare exercises related to the matter. The Iron Man suits were on top of the kids list but he wasn’t ready to share Iron Man with anyone yet. He found out that he was also very good at chemistry and liked it. Tony would order different substances for Peter to ‘play’ with. Obviously there were non threatening, and if they were, Tony kept an extra eye on him. Nothing happened, Peter was always careful with what he did.

“Oh shoot!” Tony looked surprised at Peter’s choice of words. The kid wasn’t one to curse. Peter stood up quickly from his chair and started to put his things away as quickly as he could.

“What happened?”

“I lost track of time. May’s going to kill me.” He finished with his backpack. He turned around, seeing if he was forgetting anything. He started talking mostly to himselft. “If I go to the subway station now, maybe I can get the last subway at midnight and -”

“Don’t worry kid. I’ll tell Happy to take you home.”

“What? No, it’s fine. Really, I can make it.”

“I’d be more at ease if Happy takes you home.” Tony insisted, Peter thought it over and gave him a short nod. They waited till Happy got there and Peter waved Tony goodbye. 

_ I’m home. Thanks Mr Stark! _

Tony smiled. Meeting this kid wasn’t that bad after all.

* * *

Tony, knowing he had a busy week ahead of him, had to postpone their meeting with Peter. Instead of meeting on Tuesdays and Thursdays like they usually did, he told Peter to meet on Friday for a couple of hours instead of their usual 4 hours. Tony tried to juggle himself out of the meetings so he could be with Peter but Pepper told him it was only for that week. Tony obliged reluctantly. He was starting to look forward to Peter’s visits.

Friday came and so did Peter. Peter entered the workshop and he looked at his surroundings briefly in awe and wonder, as he always did. Tony smiled. Even though Peter had been coming for more than a month now, he didn’t stop to be amazed, the kid would get excited even with the simplest of things. That right there was something Tony loved about Peter. No matter what Tony would say or show him, Peter always showed interest and even offered ideas to make whatever they were working on more efficient.

Time passed quickly to both of them. Tony couldn’t believe he only had 20 minutes until his next meeting. He cursed, Peter looked up quickly.

“What’s wrong?”

“I have a meeting in 20 minutes.” Tony moved quickly, shutting some equipment down. “Do you mind getting your things ready?”

Peter nodded, Tony watched the kid put his things away in his old, very used, backpack and followed Tony. They went to the elevator to get to the ground floor. Meanwhile, Peter put his jacket with the hood on while Tony looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Peter only had a tshirt on, but the day had been warm, so it was okay. Peter must have read his mind.

“I’m not cold, I use it mostly for the rain.” Tony nodded. When they reached the floor they both stepped outside, walking towards the closest exit, a staff entrance at the back of the building.

“Are you up for next Tuesday?”

“Ready as I’ll ever be.”

Tony smiled and opened the door. Suddenly flashes and loud voices invaded his senses. He glanced around quickly and couldn’t believe his eyes. Reporters from different networks and stations had gathered right near the exit. Even though there was a perimeter set, they were pretty close and the sounds very loud. It was dark outside so the constant flashes bothered his eyes.

Tony shielded Peter the best he could before pushing him back roughly and closing the door.  _ Stupid, stupid, stupid. _ How could he have been so careless? He should have checked the entrance, made sure that it was safe. Usually Happy was the one to do that but he was out for the day. While the main entrance was usually well guarded by security personnel, side doors like this one were only checked periodically to avoid Tony running into reporters. Tony rubbed his face and sighed in annoyance, more at himself than the reporters outside.

“Hey kid, sorry about that. We’ll look into the pictures to make sure you’re not recognized and - Peter?”

Tony turned towards Peter and trailed off, worried. Peter was currently hunched over with his back facing Tony, his backpack now on the floor. He could hear his breathing - shallow and fast - and approached him quickly to rest a hand on his shoulder. As soon as he did, Peter let out a grunt of discomfort and moved clumsily out of the way.

_ Kid, what happened? _

Tony went around him and looked at him. He had his eyes closed, eyebrows knitted together, scrunched in pain. His shaky hands scratched his chest until his hand found the zipper and pulled it down, he proceeded to take the jacket off quickly. As soon as he did, he put his hands over his ears trying to block the sound out apparently. What happened? He had been fine a few seconds ago ... but then Tony realized.

_ A panic attack _ . He was responsible for Peter having a  _ panic attack _ .

“Peter -“ Tony stretched his hand towards him, he had no intention of touching him, only trying to assure him it was okay. Peter saw him, though, and stepped back fearfully, getting away from him. 

“Sorry,” Peter said softly. With the little amount of coordination he had left, Peter took his backpack and jacket and ran off towards another exit. Tony was left alone, his hand reaching out to the empty space where Peter had stood only a second ago.

———

Tony made it in time for his meeting. Men and women discussing things he didn’t care about. He didn’t care, he showed up only to please Pepper. His mind would go back to Peter, he felt nothing but guilt. He wanted to go after Peter but he was sure the kid was already gone. Tony didn’t take him for a fast runner but Peter had dashed out quickly. He sighed heavily, sinking into his seat. The kid had had a panic attack. He wasn’t sure what had caused it but it must have something to do with the reporters. He would definitely talk to Happy about that. Tony swallowed. He couldn’t imagine someone as young as Peter going through that, it was awful. He became better at getting through them, but it was never easy.

He grabbed his phone, ignored the looks of annoyance from the board members, and texted Peter to ask if he’d made it home alright. It wasn’t until late that night that he got a ‘ _ I’m home’  _ from Peter and nothing else. His responses were usually longer and riddled with emoticons and even some jokes. The kid had never been this short with him.

Saturday went by. He talked to Pepper about what happened and they discussed what they would do in case a picture of Peter’s face was released. Luckily, they found out later that day that, with Peter being behind Tony and with his hood up, nobody got a clear shot of his face. Tony sighed in relief, even though the theories they were spreading about Tony and Peter’s relationship were annoying and frustrating. Some of them were pretty close to the truth but Tony didn’t really care.

On Sunday, Tony checked his phone again. No new messages from Peter yet. Tony looked at the screen in confusion because he expected to hear something from him by now. Peter would always text, a lot. He became more and more confident about it as they grew closer. Tony wouldn’t answer all his texts but he always made sure to read them. Now he had nothing. He could only wonder why. Maybe Peter was angry at him? 

By Monday, Tony was worried. He was tempted to text May but they hadn’t had any sort of contact yet and it wouldn’t be a good conversation starter.  _ ’Everything okay, kid?’  _ Tony wrote. He soon got a short  _ ‘Yeah’  _ for an answer. The idea of Peter being angry grew more and more. 

This was confirmed when Tony got a text from Peter very late on Monday saying he couldn’t come to the tower on Tuesday or Thursday with an excuse about homework and exams. Tony lowered his phone slowly. The truth slowly sank in.

_ Peter is angry at me _ .

Tony’s lifestyle had the particular characteristic that once you entered it, you had no chance of getting out. Everything about him was an open book, sometimes even tainted with lies that people made up. Tony had learned to ignore it, but Peter? This could follow him for the rest of his life.

Of course it was difficult for him, he was still young and not used to getting this kind of attention. And, unbidden, Tony’s insecurities began to rear their ugly heads. This was only the start, he thought, it’ll get worse, especially when they eventually would get lucky enough to get a clear look at Peter’s face and somehow learn his name. They’d find him, follow him, corner him … and even though Tony had scoffed at the articles accompanying the pictures today, suddenly, they began to make more sense. They’d speculated about Tony’s ability to be a third soulmate, to be able to support his soulmate the way he was supposed to and Peter … he was still a kid. He looked at their texts and it became clear to him how very much he’d come to depend on Peter when it should be the other way around. And now, Peter was angry and stuck with him and it would probably only be a matter of time before he realized how screwed-up Tony really was and would want out of their arrangement and … well, Tony didn’t handle rejection well. Maybe, he thought, it was better to end it now, before things would get worse. Maybe, a little distance was all he needed.

With a heavy heart, Tony texted Peter if they could meet briefly on Friday, only for a few minutes. When Peter answered  _ ‘okay’ _ , Tony made sure to contact Happy to pick him up as soon as he was out of school.

* * *

Tony clenched and unclenched his fists. Peter was going to be here any minute now. They were meeting in the workshop, Tony made sure to have a project up and running to use as an excuse and to keep him busy. He heard two sets of feet come towards him then stop. Then one pair, assumingly Happy, walked out. Silence fell on the lab. Tony was about to speak but his throat felt constricted.

“What’s all this about Mr Stark?” Peter asked in a small voice. Tony cleared his throat.

_ I’m sorry kid, so sorry. _

“Thanks for all your help but we are done. ”

“What do you - ? Is this about what happened the other day? I can explain - ”

“This was all part of a test. And now that we have the results, we are done. You are free to go.” Tony turned his head back a little but his eyes were still glued to the screen in front of him.

_ Please don’t make it worse. Just go. _

Peter didn’t say anything, but he didn’t leave either. Tony gulped, not wanting to say what came next.

“I don't want to see you again, Peter.”

“You’re - you’re lying. Please don't do this.” 

Tony breathed in slowly, composed himself as best he could and faced him. Peter’s eyes were red and shiny. He blinked fast, keeping the tears at bay.

“Did you think I ever cared?” 

One tear fell. 

“Yes!” Peter said with such determination, there was no hesitation on his words. It caught Tony off-guard. Peter asked tentatively, “What about our soulmate mark?” His tone was fearful, pleading for a different outcome.

"We don't need that. Almost nobody's got one." Peter was being too stubborn for Tony’s taste. He couldn’t keep his act together much longer so he turned away from him again and continued,“You can leave your security badge on your way out. Happy will take you home.” Tony closed his eyes when he heard a sniff behind him, then silence met his ears until finally, slowly, Peter’s steps retreated quietly.

As soon as he knew Peter was far away, he turned and saw the now empty space and his demeanor fell. All confidence and seriousness fell away only to reveal sadness and regret. His heart clenched. It hurt Tony more than he cared to admit, he didn’t want Peter to go through another panic attack if he could prevent it, didn’t want Peter to lose an uncomplicated life without people breathing down his neck, watching his every move, but if Peter stayed with him, it was bound to happen.

_ It’s for the best. For him. _

He repeated this over and over to himself.

* * *

Tony sighed. He had lots of things to do and it was already late. He was tired but he had responsibilities. Who was he kidding? He was also Tony Stark and he did whatever he wanted. There would be consequences for sure but nothing that he couldn’t handle. He decided to take one last look at his current project before calling it a night.

His eyes scanned the hologram carefully and noticed that all his calculations were indeed correct. He swiped his hand through the air, turning the hologram off and stretched his arms out. It had been a long day.

He turned to say something when he realized no one was there. He was alone. His eyes fell on the empty table. The empty table which had belonged to Peter two weeks ago. He let out a deep sigh.

Tony looked down to his chaotic working table and decided to organize it at least a little bit.

He had picked that habit up from Peter from when he used to come over. Every Thursday, a few minutes before Happy would take Peter home, he would sort the papers laying around in a neat pile. After seeing Peter doing that a few times, he had started doing the same unconsciously, turning it into a routine later on.

His eyes fell on a particular piece of paper upon his desk and he stopped. He grabbed the paper gently but with a firm grip. It had been the last project he had been working on with Peter. Tony closed his eyes for a moment. 

Dang. He really missed the kid. He felt a sting on his chest. He rubbed his hand over it hoping it would ease the pain away. He was tempted so many times to grab his phone and give him a call. Tell him to come over, to say he was sorry. He stopped himself every single time. He had to stop thinking about himself, about what he wanted and think of what was best for Peter, which meant being away from one another.

_ Remember, it’s for the best. _

Consequently, he knew his colored vision would fade away after not seeing Peter for a while but he could live with that.

He rubbed his eyes quickly and harshly. Something must have flown into them because he felt a sudden sting. He couldn’t be tears. Stark men didn’t cry. His fingers came away wet, though, and a tear made its way down his face.

He would have laughed if someone told him that a few years in the future, he would care so much for someone he barely knew. Let alone a kid that was so different from him. He squeezed his eyes shut, the stinging intensifying momentarily.

When he opened them again, a soft gasp escaped his lips. His eyes scanned his surroundings quickly, not believing what had happened. 

His mind must be playing tricks on him because … he was seeing in black and white again. He knew it would come but it couldn’t have happened that fast. He’d only ever heard that it happened gradually. 

Suddenly, his colored vision returned briefly, only to go away again after a few seconds. He frowned and looked around, confused as to what was happening.

He remembered looking up stories of other people with the same third soulmate mark he had and one story in particular came to mind. His hands started to shake, his heart skipping a beat. 

_ No, this can’t be happening. _

He remembered reading about how the person’s colored vision stopped abruptly, how it cut off, only for them to find out that their soulmate had passed away.

“FRIDAY, call Peter and track his phone!”

Tony let go of the piece of paper while looking for his phone desperately. He found it in his right side pocket. 

_ Come on, come on, come on. Pick up. _

The call was going through. He only needed for Peter to answer his phone. He hoped he hadn’t changed the number.

_ What to do? What to do? Car. I need to find Peter. Yes. Keys, keys keys. Where are the keys!? _

He was running around searching the things he needed to get going as quickly as he could while he waited for Peter to pick up. In his panic, he looked twice in some or so fast that he didn’t have enough time to actually see if what he was looking for was there in the first place.

His heart skipped a beat when he heard Peter’s voice over the phone. He was about to say something when he realized that it was the voicemail. He let out a grunt in frustration and called again.

He stopped dead when his colored vision returned. He breathed a sigh of relief. He had to admit that even though the colors brought an immense sense of relief, dread had a firm grip on his heart. It meant that Peter was okay but he hadn’t been a few seconds ago. The main question was if he was going to be okay from now on.

_ Keep fighting kid, please. _

Tony checked. He had his keys and wallet in hand ready to leave. He looked to the side where FRIDAY had brought up a hologram. It displayed a map of the NYC. The map moved according to where the signal could be coming from. There was only 10% left to scan to find out Peter’s location. 

Tony dialled again and this time, the call went through, loud traffic noises and sirens filling the lab.

“Peter! Are you okay? What happen-.“

A voice he had never heard interrupted him on the other end.

“Is this the family of Peter Parker?”

Tony stood in silence, not sure of what he had just heard. His eyes fell on the hologram in front of him with Peter’s location.

Before leaving in a hurry he made sure to grab a hoodie, sunglasses and a cap so people wouldn’t recognize him. 

On the ride over Tony had instructed FRIDAY to text May with a short summary of what had happened and to come quickly. He was glad he asked Peter for May’s contact a few weeks ago, just in case. He would have liked to contact her for the first time under different circumstances.

Sometime during the ride, Tony had had to ask FRIDAY to keep on driving for him, his hands hadn’t stopped shaking. He had been told that Peter had been hit by a car. Apparently people told the paramedics at the scene that there had been a little lost girl standing in the middle of the street searching for her parents. She hadn’t paid attention to the car’s honk behind her or the light approaching her. Peter had run and pushed the girl out of harm's way, but hadn’t been so lucky himself. Tony had heard the man on the phone said that they were sure Peter was going to be fine in the long run but Tony still wasn’t sure how bad it was. Luckily his colored vision was not flickering in and out anymore but that didn’t mean Peter was out of the woods yet, because even though the colors were still there, they were faded and dull.

Tony came running through the doors. He asked the receptionist if they had any news about Peter but unfortunately for him, he was not family so they were not allowed to share details with him. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration and proceeded to sit on the first chair he found. Now, he could only wait for May to get there. That’s how he found himself sitting in an uncomfortable chair at some random hospital he had never heard about. 

All sounds around him where muffled, he felt he was underwater. He could hear people talking near him but couldn’t make out any words at all. He sat there, staring into space. Waiting for some, if any, good news. His chest was tight and his breathing was short and quicker than normal. He closed his eyes and started to count slowly, trying to slow his breathing down. Trying and failing to be calm if he was being honest.

What Tony did hear half an hour later was the name Peter Parker. He looked back towards the receptionist and saw a young woman with big glasses.

“May?” He asked tentatively. 

The woman turned in his direction, searching for the source of the voice until her eyes fell on him. She thanked the receptionist and walked towards him in a hurry. She had her hands around the straps of her purse, her knuckles were white.

“Mr. Stark? What happened?” she asked fearfully. Tony motioned to the seat next to him so she could sit down. Tony sighed heavily.

“Peter’s fine. I don’t know much but, um, I know that he was hit by a car. They wouldn’t share anything else with me. And now here we are.” 

May gasped and lifted her hands to her face. She composed herself.

“How did you know something happened?”

Tony pointed to his eyes. “My colored vision went black and white for a moment. I knew that not seeing Peter would eventually do that but this was different. It was not gradually. It just happened. That’s when I tried calling him and … yeah.” He gestured to the waiting room. 

They waited in silence for a while. People came and went, no one paying attention to them. Finally May spoke up.

“Tony.” 

He looked at her. 

“How’s your vision?” Her voice shook.

Tony looked away, not wanting to answer her question. He didn’t want to worry her but he also knew that looking away confirmed that something was still not right. He felt a soft hand on his forearm.

“Please.” 

Tony sighed. “It’s dull. It’s not black and white but the colors are barely there. I think it’s getting better.”

May nodded slowly. 30 minutes passed when a doctor came looking for them. The two of them stood up quickly, expectant. Good news were shared. Peter was okay. He had suffered a few cracked ribs, a concussion and a few cuts and bruises along his forearms and legs. But overall he was going to be fine. May and Tony sighed in relief. Having said that, the doctor told them to wait a few more minutes before they could take them to Peter’s room, they sat on their chairs again. After a while May spoke.

“You know, I never liked you.” She chuckled.

“Oh.”

“Yeah, since he was little. My husband and I tried to distract him with anything we could but he would never stop talking about Iron Man. Peter would look at you with stars in his eyes. He was a fan since he was a kid and never stopped being a one”

“Never stopped being a fan or a kid?” Tony said. May laughed. 

“We have been through a lot of things but we’ve always had each other. I know he’ll pull through just fine. He’s strong.” She paused. “You know, he was devastated when you distanced yourself from him.”

“I’m sorry.” After an awkward silence, Tony spoke up again. “Is there anything I can do for you?” He wasn’t sure what compelled him to say that but it felt right.

“You can apologize.” 

Tony looked at her in confusion. 

“To Peter. He was a wreck when he came home that night.” 

Tony kept quiet. He expected Peter to be upset after what he said but he didn’t know it affected Peter that much.

“Why did you do it?” She asked, her tone wasn’t accusing, it was curious. 

Tony thought it through. “I thought that keeping my distance, he would be safe. Well, safer, considering my lifestyle. I’m not a good example for him.”

“No you’re not. But nobody’s perfect.” 

Tony nodded. Not sure where the conversation was heading.

“You have to know something. Losing Ben was hard on us, but it was harder for him. He kept to himself, didn’t smile much, barely ate. But you made a difference. And like I said, I might not agree with what you do, but you are good for him. He needs you. Please tell me you’ll fix this.”

“I will, Thanks May.” 

May smiled and it warmed Tony’s heart. He never believed he could have such an impact on anyone. May grabbed her phone after it vibrated and her smile dropped.

“No, no no no.”

“What? What is it?” 

May ran a hand through her messy hair.

“Something happened at work and I have to go back. My shift ends in 4 hours. I want to be there when Peter wakes up.” She bit her nail nervously. 

Tony was about to tell her not to worry that he could talk to her boss about what happened or he could offer her a new job if it came to it. Then he remembered Peter and his stubbornness about not allowing anyone to help him financially. Tony had always tried for 10 solid minutes to give Peter some cash so he could take a taxi home after the internship finished but Peter had always said he was fine with taking the subway. He figured May wouldn’t accept his help either.

“I can stay until you come back,” Tony said with a smile, trying to lift the mood.

“You would do that?”

“Yeah of course.”

“Hmm.”

“What?”

She grinned. “You do care about him.”

Tony didn’t answer, he shot her a smile instead not sure what to say.

* * *

Tony was lead to Peter’s room after May told the personnel that he was allowed to stay there. Peter was still asleep when he came in. He looked so small in the big bed. He had a nasal cannula, and from what Tony could see, some scraps and bruises. He had to admit the kid looked pretty good all things considered. He sat down gently, trying to be as quiet as possible. He took his phone to check on some emails and also to pass the time. 

“Where’s May?” 

Tony looked up from his phone at the sudden voice. Peter still had his eyes closed, as if he was just about to wake up. Tony wasn’t sure when he woke up or how he recognized that Tony was there and not May.

“She was here a few hours ago but she was called in last minute. I’ll wait here with you until she comes back. How’s the pain?” Tony asked tentatively. Peter’s opened his eyes a little only to close them quickly, his face in a tight grimace.

“Fine I guess. It’s just a headache. The sounds and smells are not helping.” It seemed Peter was about to say something else but stopped himself. 

Tony nodded awkwardly, they stayed quiet for a few minutes. 

“Why are you here?” Peter asked, he turned his head slowly towards Tony and tried opening his eyes again. Tony noticed the anger and sadness in his voice. “I mean, you said you never cared.”

“I’m sorry.” 

The sincerity behind the words threw Peter off. He didn’t expect Tony to say that. After more silence, Tony continued.

“I thought that keeping a distance would be better, but I was talking to May before and she said that it wasn’t. She said that I hurt you. And for that, I’m sorry.” Tony waited for Peter to say something but he kept quiet. He was starting to feel uneasy. It was becoming clear to Tony that Peter didn’t want him there. He stood up from his chair and grabbed the door knob. 

“You’re leaving?” 

Tony turned back around to him, surprised.

“Yeah, I guess you’re still angry. I’ll wait outside until May arrives -”

“Angry?” Peter asked confused. “ I’m not. Why would you think that?” 

Tony clenched and unclenched his hands nervously. He was so not used to talk about sensitive subjects.

“After what happened with the reporters and the panic attack I figured you were.” He studied Peter carefully. All anger and sadness had been banished from his voice, he sounded tired.

“Why would I be?”

“Well it was my fault for not checking. And you canceled the internship the next day. Figured you didn’t want to see me.”

“That was a big misunderstanding. I was not mad at you I was - embarrassed.” 

Tony frowned in confusion. 

Peter explained, “Maybe you don’t get it but you’re you. You are the coolest person in the room. And to experience a panic attack in front of you was not what I was going for.” Peter smiled at the end. 

“Oh.” So the whole situation had been one big misunderstanding. All because of him. Tony scratched the back of his head. He sighed and went back to his chair, pulled it closer to the bed. Peter followed his actions with his gaze.

“How about we pretend the last two weeks didn’t happen?” 

Peter smiled again, this time a bigger and more genuine smile.

“I’d like that.” 

Tony clapped his hands once.

“So! What have you been up to these days?”

* * *

It didn’t feel like it had been almost 2 months since Peter’s accident. The kid bounced back quickly without any lasting damage, not even a scar. They had made up and everything was good. Even better than before.

Tony learned that talking was good. Something his father never had time to teach him, considering the man barely spent time with him.

Tony couldn’t imagine where he would be if it weren’t for Peter. He never wanted to admit it but meeting Peter was one of the best things to ever happen to him. At the hospital he found out through May that Peter had needed him as well.

Most people weren’t sure why there was a platonic soulmate but now, after everything he had been through, Tony was sure it was meant to bring together people who needed each other. 

His train of thought was cut off when he felt a pain in his chest. He gasped softly rubbing his hand on his chest back and forth trying to ease the pain..

“What’s wrong?” Pepper asked.

“Nothing,” He said too quickly.

He knew that Pepper didn’t believe him but she didn’t push it either. They were currently hanging out in the living room. Tony pretended to pay attention to whatever show Pepper had chosen but his mind couldn’t help but wander off Peter.

Tony was getting worried. He had had heart problems before so the pain in his chest was nothing new to him. What worried him the most was that the pain he felt was not related to his heart’s condition, it was related to Peter.

As soon as Peter had been released from the hospital Tony resumed the internship straight away. They had been in the workshop when Peter bumped into the sharp edge of the table with a cry. Tony had been watching him and he felt the sting in his chest just as Peter had hit himself. 

After an experiment (which involved Tony hitting himself in the hand), they both realized that whenever one of them felt physical pain, the other would feel the sting. When they first discovered it, he had to admit it had been very fascinating. It probably had something to do with their bond getting stronger.

Now however Tony could only worry. He started feeling sudden stings every other day at first. He knew that whenever Peter got excited he could be a little more clumsy than usual. But a few weeks later, Tony would feel a sting almost every day. Some days even two or three times. 

Tony thought maybe Peter was having trouble at school, only to realize that the time was off. He felt more pain in the evening when school was out, so it couldn’t have been a bully. Tony didn’t want to ask Peter just yet, hoping Peter would come to him but he didn’t. 

When Tony started to  _ expect  _ the pain sometime throughout the day, he decided it was enough. He would ask Peter about what was happening next Thursday at the internship.

The day came faster than Tony had expected. A few days ago, he’d prepared the way he wanted to start the conversation in his head. Now, having Peter standing a few feet away from him, he wasn’t sure how it was going to go. He was afraid it would end in a fight. Tony didn’t want to lose what he had with Peter.

He looked looked at the time. Only one hour till Happy would take Peter home. Tony cleared his throat a little louder than normal.

“So kid, Is everything okay? At school?” Tony asked a little hesitant. He lifted his gaze momentarily towards Peter, whose eyebrows were knitted together in concentration.

“Um, yeah. Nothing out of the ordinary. Why?”

“Got any problem with bullies?” 

Peter looked up at Tony, confusion written all over his face. “Uh, no. Why you ask?”

Tony was looking down at some random blueprint on his desk. He could feel Peter’s gaze on him.

“Remember when we tested our little theory?” Tony heard Peter letting out a soft laugh.

“Yeah, that was a lot of fun.” 

Tony wanted to add a comment on how it most certainly was  _ not _ fun. He had hit himself a little harder than expected. But now was not the time for that. Tony was sticking to his plan.

“Well, I’ve been feeling things. You know, the stings.” 

In the middle of the sentence, Tony looked up at Peter. Tony could see it in Peter’s face when he finally connected the dots. Peter’s eyes widened in surprise for a second, but he soon shrugged it off and averted his gaze back to his homework. Tony let out a chuckle. Peter could be such a bad liar sometimes.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I must have bumped into something. I don’t know.” He kept his gaze down. 

“Is there something going on at home?” Tony knew in his heart that May would never do something to hurt Peter in a million years but he had to push if he wanted an answer from him.

“What? No!” Peter looked up at Tony then, shocked in indignation.

They stared at each other in silence for a few seconds. Finally Peter looked down, again. 

“Why would you even ask something like that?” Peter’s voice was soft but clearly upset. Tony approached Peter’s desk until he was standing right beside him. Peter pretended his homework was more interesting.

“Then tell me kid. What’s really going on.” Tony said in the softest tone he could muster. He wanted to gain Peter’s trust, to be someone Peter could go to whenever things were not okay. Peter kept silent. The pencil scratching on paper was the only sound that filled the air.

_ Ok, different tactic then _ .

“You know I’m going to keep on asking, kid.” 

“Well, it’s nothing. Just drop it, okay?” Peter stood up, slowly and started picking his books up and putting them away in his backpack. Peter still didn’t look at Tony while he gathered his things. Tony let out a sigh in frustration. He wondered whether to keep pushing because Peter was getting more upset, and it was because of him.

If it were anything else he would have dropped it. But this was serious. Something was going on with Peter, something (or someone) was hurting him. Tony put his hand on Peter’s shoulder.

“Peter-”

“Tony, please just leave it.” Peter moved sideways quickly, prying Tony’s hand off his shoulder. A loud cry of pain left Peter’s lips. It was cut off, like if Peter had realized he screamed and closed his mouth quickly. Peter instantly dropped the book he had in his hands and hugged his middle.

“Kid …” Tony whispered.

“I’m going home, Happy’s waiting for me.” 

Tony knew that was a lie. They still had 45 minutes left. Peter hadn’t finished his sentence when Tony already grabbed the hem of Peter’s hoodie and lifted it. Peter tried to stop him but Tony had already seen. He wasn’t sure what he had expected to find. A bruise, maybe a small cut. He hadn’t been expecting to see bandages around Peter’s lower torso. To make it worse, he could see some blood staining the bandages. Tony froze. His mind wasn’t working right. This was serious. Very serious. He was used to seeing this, but with the Avengers. It was an occupational hazard. 

But seeing it on a 15 year old kid? 

That was not okay. Peter was hurt in a serious way, and from the looks of it, if it kept escalating it could someday be fatal. 

Tony closed his eyes, trying to calm himself down. 

_ Remember, it’s not his fault. Don’t snap at him.  _

He opened his eyes and lifted them to Peter’s face. He could tell now that Peter was still in pain, his hand resting gently on his ribs. Peter was currently looking away, his other hand playing with the hem of his hoodie in a nervous way.

"Peter, what happened? Who did this to you?" Tony tried,  _ really tried, _ to say it gently but anger seeped through his words. He’d never considered it before but now he knew that if someone was doing this to Peter, he would do anything in his power to put an end to it. Peter stared at Tony with fear in his eyes. He gulped and looked down at his feet.

“Please, Peter, talk to me. Are you trying to protect someone?”

Still nothing.

“It can’t be someone good if they are doing this to do.”

Tony was met with more silence. He had to hand it to the kid. He was even more stubborn than Tony ever was (according to himself). 

“No talking? Nada? Fine,” Tony said, dropping the hem of the hoodie. Peter looked up then, wondering what he meant. Tony took his phone out of his pocket, his eyes locked on the screen.

“I’ll call May and tell her.”

“Wait. Don’t - don’t tell her.” Peter grabbed his arm and lowered it slowly. He was stronger than Tony thought. Peter bit the side of his lip nervously.

“You have to promise me that you won't tell anyone,” Peter said with determination.

Tony considered his words. What was this kid involved in?  _ Please don’t let it be anything weird _ . Tony grabbed his shoulders as gently as he could and looked at Peter.

“You know I can’t agree with that, Peter. This is your well-being we’re talking about. Let’s hear it and then we’ll decide if it’s worth keeping it a secret, okay?”

Tony kept staring at him. Peter on his part looked away after he spoke, avoiding Tony eyes. He seemed to hesitate, maybe not sure whether to tell Tony at all. Tony turned away from Peter, lifting his phone to his ear.

“Okay, calling May right now -“

“imspiderman”

Tony stopped in his tracks, turning slowly.

“Say what?”

Peter took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

“I’m Spider-Man.”

Tony blinked once, then twice. He heard Peter but it took his brain more than a few seconds to process the information. It felt like minutes to him. His mind short circuited. He didn’t react. Heck, he’s not even sure  _ how _ to react.  _ Spider-Man? Peter was Spider-Man? _

Tony’s mind went quickly through articles and news talking about this new vigilante who had appeared a few months ago. Tony had been impressed. Yes, he could tell the guy was an amateur but Tony could also see great potential. He tried picturing Peter and Spider-Man being one and the same but he couldn’t. 

_ Drink. I need a drink. Now _ .

Peter was staring at him now, unsure of what to do. His eyes followed Tony silently. Tony went to a nearby cabinet and opened it, then grabbed an empty glass, closed the cabinet and took a bottle from the mini fridge sitting next to him. 

Since Peter had uttered the words, Tony hadn’t looked back at him. He poured his drink slowly, staring at it with a deep frown on his face, as if it could answer all of his questions. Finally, slowly, Tony lifts his gaze. Peter was standing on the same spot he had been before. Tony’s eyes darted back to his drink, and up to Peter again. 

Tony opened his mouth to say something but ended up closing it. He didn’t know what to say really.

“Mr Stark -“

Tony raised his hand quickly in a ‘stop’ motion. Peter complied and waited. Tony lifted the glass towards his lips and stayed still. A few seconds later, he knocked it back, letting the liquid burn through his throat.

Then he pointed at Peter, motioned with his hand for Peter to follow him and walked out the door. Peter looked at him in confusion while he hurried towards Tony.

* * *

Peter felt much better with the new and softer bandages. Tony directed him to the small med bay inside the tower and pointed to the bed for Peter to sit. He did. Tony grabbed a medical kit from somewhere, Peter wasn’t paying attention that much. Carefully, Tony lifted his hoodie and peeled the bandages away. It hurt when Tony disinfected the wound. He didn’t speak yet, doing everything in silence. Peter was not used to Tony being quiet. He didn’t even say anything when Peter assured him that he’d cleaned the wound already. He just cleaned it again. Peter thought that there could be a chance Tony would insist on stitching him up when Tony stared at the wound for a long moment, inspecting. But then he rubbed his eyes and proceeded to grab new bandages. He gently dressed the wound, going three times around Peter’s chest. After looking at his handiwork, Tony put the medical kit away and sat beside Peter, their feet dangling off the bed.

He ran his hands down his face and sighed tiredly. Peter figured Tony must have texted Happy at point in time, letting him know that Peter would be staying a little while longer. 

“So, there's that.” Tony finally broke the silence. He looked at Peter. “Somebody knows?”

Peter looked down and shook his head. “Nobody.”

Tony hummed, thinking. “So you’re telling me … that for the last … what, seven months?”

“Six months.”

“Six months? You’ve been doing this all by yourself without anyone knowing?”

“I didn't want anyone getting hurt because of me.”

“Kid, if you haven’t heard, I’m Iron Man. I can take care of myself just fine.”

Peter looked at Tony with fear in his eyes.

“It’s not just about you, ok?” He sounded frustrated.“There’s Aunt May and my friends from school. I - I can’t let anything happen to them. I can’t risk anyone knowing.”

Tony nods. After a few seconds, Peter asked,“Are you - are you mad at me?”

“Mad? No. Angry? Yes.”

Tony sensed Peter tensing up.

“But you know what? I am also very proud of you, kid. Most people wouldn’t do what you are doing now.”

Their eyes met, Peter’s wide in disbelief. Tony smiled reassuringly and patted his shoulder gently. Peter smiled. When his eyes started to well up, he turned away from Tony quickly.

“Are you, you know, going to tell May?” Peter asked in a small voice.

Tony thought about it.

“No. It’s not really my place to say.”

Peter looked up at him, surprised. 

“Seriously?”

“Yes. But I have a deal for you, if you want to go out superheroing.”

Peter was about to protest but Tony raised his hand.

“You keep going out spidermaning or whatever it is that you do, but every time you get hurt, I want you to come here to get patched up. You get any kind of injury and you come here. And don’t even try hiding it, I know when you’re in pain.”

“Come on, that’s not fair at all. This is not a deal. ”

“It’s a pretty sweet deal if you ask me. If your aunt finds out that  _ I _ have known about your little secret for a long time  _ and  _ even encouraged you to keep going on, it’s going to be my head on a silver platter. So I want to try and get brownie points for being at least kind of responsible. So, what do you say? Do we have a deal?”

Peter wasn’t happy about it but he didn’t have much of a choice.

“Fine.” He said reluctantly.

Tony clapped his hands together and stood up from the medbay’s bed.

“That being said, I want to show you something.”

Peter wasn’t sure what Tony wanted to show him. He was surprised how well the conversation had gone, except for the conditions but it could have gone much worse. Without missing a beat, they were both back in the workshop.

“FRIDAY, display project 17A.”

“ _ On it, boss. _ ”

Peter smiled, his eyes followed the hologram that was being formed before him. It was not often that Tony used holograms to work on things. Dots, lines, numbers, symbols came and went arranging themselves and forming different things. A silhouette of a man was formed and soon more lines joined to assemble what Peter could interpret as a suit design. Peter was bouncing excitedly, knowing that Tony was about to show him his next Iron Man suit design. Lines traced over the arms, legs and torso. It looked different from the usual Iron Man suit, maybe Tony was going for a redesign.

Peter followed a particular line to the chest of the figure, it was doing a different shape for the reactor in the middle. It most definitely looked like a spider and -  _ wait _ . Peter did a double take. He leaned forward to get a closer look because he must have looked wrong. His mind was playing tricks on him.

_ It can’t be, no freaking way _ . He confirmed that there was indeed a symbol of a spider sitting in the middle of the chest. Peter also realized that on both arms and legs there were small lines forming a web pattern. Finally, Peter looked at the silhouettes face and he saw indeed the lines tracing some sort of lenses on the face. Now, it was Peter’s turn to stay silent in shock. 

“Is - is is is this?”

“Yup. Had been working on it for a while. I was considering track you down, well Spider-Man. But I guess he came to me.”

_ Wow _ . Peter stared at the clean, sharp design. It felt as if his eyes were glued onto the hologram and he couldn’t take his eyes off of it. 

“This is the coolest thing I’ve ever seen. I’m just -  _ wow _ . I don’t have any words for it.”

“That’s great, ‘cause you’ll love all the new features and protocols your new suit’s going to have.”

“That sounds gre - Wait, what? What do you mean by protocols?”

Tony simply smiled in a mischievous way. Peter groaned. Yup, he was screwed.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> I want to thank Jolinarjackson who's been a wonderful beta. I can't thank you enough!!
> 
> Thank you all for reading! I hope you liked it ˆvˆ


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